IH School Collaboration: Language and Culture Swap

Projects to give your students the opportunity to get together with their peers in different IH schools.

• Benefits for IH schools - Prestige to offer international opportunities to your students,
• Benefits for IH students - An opportunity to interact with people from other countries (which they may never travel to) in a meaningful way, using language in a truly authentic setting. 

IHWO will  facilitate different schools bringing their students together, but the specific logistics will be managed by the schools participating. For queries please mail info@ihworld.com

"Language and Culture Swap"

• In a one hour zoom session, a group of 6 (max) students will teach their own language to their “matched school”, and then learn the other language in return. (For example, students from IH Bucharest teach Romanian to a group of students from IH Veracruz, and they teach Spanish in return.)

• This will usually be just one single event.

Which students?

• Learners of English
• Teenagers (13-16 ideally)
• B2 and above

Details of the "Language and Culture Swap"

We become richer every time we meet people from other cultures, because:

“Most of the important lessons about life have come from recognizing how others from a different culture view things” — Edgar H. Schein

It used to be so easy to experience another culture. You could hop on a plane and, within a few hours, find yourselves in a different country, immersed in a different culture. That is not so easy now, and there are some far flung places you would probably never would have visited.

Meeting virtually can recreate that experience.

Each group has 30 mins + Q&A 

• The timing of the session is up to the two schools matched
• A group of 6 (max) of your students will meet with a similar group in another IH school for about 1hour, on zoom 
• Groups give their lesson, then swap and learn from the others. 

This will usually be just one single event. (If individual pairs of schools want follow events that is up to them!)

Both groups are learning English, so will use English as all the discussion around this.  There will also be opportunities to introduce aspects of cultural interest from their own country.  

When will this run?

• The timing is up to the schools, but it should happen between October 2021 and December 2021

What are the benefits for students?

• Get a better understanding of the world
• Apply critical thinking to stereotypes
• Acquire cross-cultural competence
• Visit a culture where you would not otherwise have the opportunity

How many schools (ideally) will collaborate?

• We will be pairing schools with students who have a different mother tongue!

(Schools will be given the opportunity in the sign-up to match more than once – so it could be that a group of three is formed, but this is not necessary) 

What is the commitment needed from each school taking part?

• You need to have at least one group of about 6 students, and a teacher needs to work with them to plan their session. If you want to use your own lesson time, or extra time to prepare that is up to the school.
• A teacher will be needed on the day of the “Lesson” to be in the zoom room to help manage the event.

Existing experience running these events?

The young learner division of IH Bucharest has done this.  They initiated a Cultural Education Programme where they brought together online, via Zoom, children from Romania and from one other country. It was a huge success!